One of the best ways to quickly get to grips with hostel life, is to talk to literally anyone and everyone. Whether it’s the hostel staff, your roommates or just fellow travellers staying at the same hostel as you. One of the main benefits of hostels is that it’s likely many other guests are in the exact same position as you, travelling solo and looking to meet fellow travellers to chat to and explore the local area with.

Communal areas in hostels are the absolute best spots for sparking up a conversation with people. Whether it’s a hostel bar, a simple common area or a shared outdoor space, you’re bound to find other travellers chilling out and relaxing, so why not go up to someone and find out where they’re from and what their plans are for the day! I’ve personally made a great deal of lifelong friends during my travels, all of which have started from a simple hello in a hostel. Often, travellers will form small groups with one another and end up continuing their travels through a country or region with their newly found companions.

Also, whilst travelling around the world, you’ll get the awesome opportunity to meet people that you would never normally cross paths with during your everyday life, so it’d be a real shame to not make the most out of these wonderful connections. You truly never know who’s about to stumble into your life, so always be sure to take up the chance of talking to someone new.

A good proportion of hostels around the world offer a range of awesome free activities for their guests to join in with, from pub crawls and trivia nights to walking tours and family barbeques. This is personally one of my favourite aspects of staying in a hostel, not only do you get to mingle and socialise with everyone, but you also get to have a fun time whilst doing so. Lots of travellers will also have the exact same mindset, so it’s certainly a quickfire way of meeting people.

Not to mention, hostels are also very clued-up on what people are looking to get up to in the local area, so nine times out of ten the planned activities are going to be things that you’d already planned on doing. It’s important to remember that not all hostel activities will be free, but with that being said, the majority of paid activities will still be well worth your while. Just be sure to do some of your own research into independent costs, as occasionally hostels may charge a large premium on top of the activity’s normal price.

One of the best bits of advice to help improve your hostel experience, is to always remain open minded whilst travelling. It’s important to remember that most people you meet in hostels may not share the same views and ideas as you, in fact they may have entirely different personalities. You should take the time to get to know and bond with your fellow travellers, by broadening your mind to a range of alternative perspectives and opinions.

The world is truly a ginormous place, boasting a wide collection of different cultures and lifestyles, hence why hostels end up being occupied by a huge variety of different guests. But no matter where people are from, there’s always one common passion that unites hostel guests together, and that passion is the burning desire to Travel! The beauty of exploring this magnificent planet is something special in its own right, but meeting people along the way and sharing these extraordinary experiences together, just makes it that extra bit more spectacular.

Okay I get it, not everyone’s a drinker, so if you steer clear of the alcohol, then just skip over this section. But for those of you that do, I feel this tip comes in handy in a variety of ways to help enhance your overall hostel experience. After all, what crazy story starts with the sentence “So, I was drinking a Sprite”.

It’s often common for hostels to arrange pub crawls as well as some version of their own drinking games. This helps encourage guests to socialise with one another and allows them to get a true party experience out of their stay. A great deal of my backpacking friendships have started over an ice cold beer shared at the hostel bar.

It’s also a good idea to read hostel descriptions and reviews before booking your accommodation, as they will usually outline what kind of vibe the hostel has. Some will be full out party hostels, some may have a more chilled out vibe, whilst others may have no sign of a bar at all. So depending on what it is you’re looking for, it’s always best to opt for a hostel that best matches your intentions.

If you’re new to hostel life, you may be unaware that a large collection of hostels around the world offer guests a range of varying dorm sizes. What I’m talking about here, is the number of beds situated inside the room you’re staying in. I’ve personally stayed in a vast array of room sizes during my time on the road, ranging from small cosy 4 beds, all the way up to gigantic 32 bed rooms.

There are a few reasons why you may choose one certain room size over another. If you’re looking for the best possible nights sleep, I’d recommend choosing a smaller dorm, due to the simple fact there’ll be fewer people in your room, meaning there’s less chance of someone waking you up throughout the night. On the other hand, if it’s socialising you’re looking for, I’d definitely recommend choosing one of the larger dorm sizes. There are two main benefits to this. Firstly, having more people in your room greatly increases the likelihood of finding to someone to chat with. Secondly, you’ll probably be sharing with more sociable travellers, as they’ll have chosen the larger dorm room for the same purpose as you, which is to socialise.

Hostel kitchens are always a buzzing melting pot of social interaction, making them one of the best areas to get properly stuck into genuine hostel life. Once you’ve got past the initial nerves of using hostel kitchens, you’ll notice many travellers are often up for helping one another out. Whether it’s sharing cooking tips, offering up ingredients, or simply wanting to have a friendly chat, the hostel kitchen is definitely one of the best places to be!

Not to mention, using hostel kitchens is one of the number one money saving tips for backpacking, cooking your own food whilst travelling means you can save your pennies to spend on other activities! Many hostel kitchens even have a small selection of free ingredients for guests to use, these are usually left by previous travellers or directly supplied by the hostel, either way, it’s another great way to save a little bit of extra cash.

Hostel staff are without a doubt the absolute best people to pick up your local tips and information from. They’re literally like walking guide books, not only are they local to the area, but they also communicate with travellers on a daily basis, allowing them to gain knowledge of the specific activities travellers are looking for in the area, as well as which ones end up receiving the greatest feedback.

Whether it’s dining recommendations or public transport explanations, you’ll usually be able to find out everything you need to know about the local area from the hostel staff. I personally love to get food suggestions from locals, as this will usually be far from your typical tourist trap locations and will give you the opportunity to feast like a genuine local. Additionally, hostel receptions will also often hand out a variety of free maps, to help you easily get to grips with the surrounding area of your destination, as well as its notable attractions and points of interest.

Being respectful in dorm rooms is a crucial part of staying in hostels. There’s nothing worse than that one inconsiderate person who waltzes into the dorm room at 3am, throws on the lights and begins to loudly rustle and rummage through the entire contents of their backpack. Most of it just boils down to common sense and courtesy, so please don’t end up being the person that everyone hates!

Be sure to keep the lights off and your voice down a minimum when it’s night time and your roommates are sleeping, you never know if people in your room have an early flight to catch in the morning. It’s best to sort out your belongings and luggage during the day, but if you absolutely need to make noise during the night, be sure to keep it down to an absolute minimum. I always believe in karma, so if you continue to remain respectful to others throughout your time in hostels, they too will reward you with respect in return.

I hate to say it, but it’s true, hostel showers can indeed be pretty grim at times, that’s why it’s always best to take a handy pair of flip flops in with you! As much as hostels attempt to continuously keep on top of cleanliness, they can’t always guarantee everything will be super spick and span. With hostel showers being used so frequently by so many people, it’s understandable that they sometimes begin to look a little worse for wear, that’s why this little bit of advice is a great addition for improving your overall hostel experience.

Whether you’re a light sleeper or just simply wanting to get a sound night’s sleep, it won’t take long for you to realise that ear plugs can be an absolute lifesaver when it comes to sleeping in hostel dorm rooms. Now I’ll be honest with you, they aren’t gonna drown out every single noise, but they’ll definitely help improve your general quality of sleep, so it’s another little item I’d definitely recommend tossing in the bottom of your backpack.